93 honda nighthawk set level fork oil is vague in manual ,help.

93 honda nighthawk set level fork oil is vague in manual ,help.

the manual shows putting 16 oz or 5.4 inches of oil into each leg.
how ever it is not clear what the other object is , that the level is
referencened from.

point 1 , top of oil ( ok that is obvious)

point 2 , top of tube, or top of threads in tube or what ? it is
unclear.
the photo looks strange and is not a real fork , but some artist idea
of one.


has anyone solved this mystery.?


thanks in advance for any help. posted here or to

posdmr AT yahoo dot com.

 

Almost certainly it is to the top of the tube. Also important is
whether the springs are installed, if the tube is extended or not
(I think the usual answer is yes to both, but sometimes you are
thrown a ringer) and whether the spacers, if any, are installed
as well (depending on wall thickness, they may displace a little
oil).

The manual should be read carefully to determine these points, they
may not be explicitly stated but may be able to be determined by
the context, or the point of disassembly/assembly that the fork oil
is mentioned at.

All that said, usually the factory recommended level is regarded by
some as merely a suggested starting point, you may wish to adjust it
slightly up or down, as well as substitute a higher/lower viscosity
oil for the OEM fish oil they put in there...

 

My Showa USD forks on my aprilia do not have springs in when measuring (cant
realy measure with springs in) but they DO have the return valve extension
in (the long thin thing with the returnadjustment at the top). I measured
without it and was riding a rock hard front that was sliding all over on the
race the day after.

Very good advice. I had to follow the point of assembly to find my
wrongdoing.

/MBE

 

"From the top of the leg top", AOK. and THANKS on and all , jerry

Yah, no problem and thanks , my 3 dirt bikes are easy. ( I bust a lot
of seals off road)
this one road bike has this silly drawing in the manual that is non
specific.
It does show , "no springs , collapsed "and setting the oil but the
dwg fails to show where the top measurment is, it shows measuring to
the bottom of the triple clamp. Goofy. Just wanted to get it correct
+- 1 mm and then adj. as needed.
I am still awaiting my real honda shop manual and I must use these
blasted clymers and haynes books. I usually buy all of them , just
in case.
Thanks for all the help and advice. The vagueness cause an error of
up to 1 full inch (25.4mm ) , and that is a lot.
the whole reason for my question.

thanks again. jerry at posdmr.

 

Jerry again.
yes, my clymer m436 , has this error on page,113 , chapter 5 , it says
and I quote: This engine is a liquid cooled double..." , now that is
great , is that not. Nighthawks on water ?


and for those people needing an index to torque pages ( should be all
on one page anyway (Clymer dudes) , but here goes.
pages with torque settings.
39,111,163,203,204,225,263,300,326,346,345,354,378,381
paste that in the back of your m436 and you will very happy.


my night hawk ( have two 750s ,one old 1975 , one new 1993)
has on page 338 , drawing 44 , shows measuring up to a "Adjustable
stop".
what the heck is an "adjustable stop".
There is an old saying, he who can,t do, teach's, he how cant teach ,
writes books. ( maybe some truth in that)
Overall a great book , however. just nit picking,
but safety is a serious matter, if one overfills the forks !

Off topic but imporant to bikers:

BTW page 345 shows how to preload the steering head bearings to 3lbs
and that is an all time first , most manuals forget this important
step.
ball bearings must be preloaded. I wonder how many people whine about
loose head when all it is , is a forgotten preload.

good luck to one and all and merry xmas. too.
posdmr.

 

BINGO: (I thinks I solved the riddle)
the item in the photo in the manual called the adjustable stop is
a custom Honda tool for measuring the fork level. Pretty dumb name
,huh?

So my answer to my own question is FILL it to 137mm from top of tube
edge to top of oil level, no springs, level , tubes collapesed,
straight ahead course.
Removing the tubes to do this would be anal retentive, to the extreme.

proof , take a tube fill it to 137mm , wait 1 day, measure again,
write it down,
then lean tube to standard rake, then measure again, The difference
would be
unmeasurable or less than 1mm. ( so long as they are equal and that
only requires roping the handlebars to straight ahead).

all we need is a coat hanger (file a notch at 137mm) or a 12inch steel
rule sold by Stanley for years (ACE hardware).
Dont need any expensive factory tools to measure.
RIP> posdmr

 

Thats easy ( so is a come along) I have a center stand on all my
bikes.
Dont leave home without it. hah.
best $125 tool i ever bought for the 93 Nighthawk.

I then just use a std bottle jack with wood spacer and lift front of
engine
forcing front wheel off ground.( on some bikes I use my Tranny jack).
On the NH , one has to tap dance around the silly belly pipes.


works on my 4 big road bikes and offroads we just throw them on a milk
crate.
The center stand and a simple jack make a nice 3 point lift and is
very stable.


This method works for rear wheel removal (move jack back) or front
tire or whol e front end.

yah,
see my old 75 CB750 sitting on tranny jack now.

http://www.jhodson.net/pics/Garage2/G2-SEv1w.jpg

pipes are off right now.


hope this shows some ways.
jerry (posdmr)